1 843.] Law of Storms in India. 363 



suppose that those ships have foundered in consequence of the in- 

 juries received when fouling each other. Since the hurricane, the 

 breeze has constantly ranged at first from the S. E. and afterwards 

 from the N. E., which would have brought them into the roads if 

 they had been afloat. The hurricane of the 24th October extended 

 itself to a great distance from Pondicherry, and on the same day ships 

 have been dismasted at 200 miles to the east of Pondicherry, while five 

 ships from Madras roads came on shore in the neighbourhood of that 



port. 



(Signed) A. Hostein, 



Pondicherry, \st December, 1842. Master Attendant. 



(A true Copy.) 



(Signed) A. Pkudhomme. 



Storm at Pondicherry. 



We are indebted to a correspondent at Pondicherry for a detailed 

 notice of the storm of the 24th ultimo, as experienced in the vicinity of 

 that town, from which we extract the following particulars : On the 

 23d the Barometer at 6 a. m. stood at 30 inches, but its fall during 

 the day indicated an approaching storm. At 6 p. m. the sea was very 

 rough, and during the night the waves rose to a great height. At 7 on 

 the morning of the 24th, the raging of the sea was terrible. The sky 

 was overcast with heavy clouds, especially in the North- East and 

 North- West. At 8 a. m. the Barometer had fallen to about 29 inches, 

 apparently indicating a hurricane. The surf was extremely violent, 

 the waves breaking over the vessels, and at 8J heavy rain commenced 

 falling, and the wind set in from the North- West, both gradually in- 

 creasing in violence as the day proceeded. The Barometer continued 

 falling till 6 in the evening, the wind varying from North- West to 

 South-West; about this hour there was a short period of calm, when 

 the wind suddenly shifted round to the South and South-East, blow- 

 ing from this quarter with as much fury as it had previously done 

 from the opposite one. At 9 p. m. the wind moderated, and it gradu- 

 ally became calm. From 10 a. m. to 9 p. m., the rain fell in torrents, 

 without ceasing. At the moment that the storm suddenly shifted 

 to the South and South-East, the Barometer had attained its lowest 



3 B 



